http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2011/06/14/another-delay-for-museum-of-african-art/ By Pia Catton The opening of the Museum for African Art’s new building has been delayed again. The museum, which will be located at Fifth Ave and 110th Street, will now open in late 2012 instead of the previously announced late 2011. The Museum for African Art decided to delay the final stage of construction in order to meet its fund-raising goal, according to a statement by museum president Elsie McCabe Thompson. Though the museum had raised $86.3 million, it has had to raise its fund-raising goal from $90 million to $95 million due to increased construction costs. Devoted to the art of Africa and the African Diaspora, the museum was…

EUROPE 22 March 2011 Last updated at 21:44 ET By Steven EkeEditor, BBC Russian Service At the end of this week, the BBC’s Russian Service will close its radio frequencies for good. The Russian Service began broadcasting to the Soviet Union in 1946 and quickly established a reputation with Soviet listeners, in the brief period before the onset of the Cold War. From 1949 until 1987, the jamming of the signal by the Soviet authorities consumed vast amounts of money and technical expertise. For many years, a significant part of the USSR’s entire radio broadcasting system was devoted to blocking transmissions from abroad. The BBC’s Russian Service was blocked selectively and varyingly.…

By Nick Neyland http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2011/06/10/a-trip-to-green-wood-cemetery-after-dark-without-dying-to-get-in/ JUNE 10, 2011, 1:08 PM ET Benjamin Norman for The Wall Street Journal Green-Wood Cemetery’s catacombs, which date back to the early 1850s, will be open to visitors during Saturday’s moonlight tour Green-Wood Cemetery has strict rules that keep visitors out after dark, but the historic burial ground will be crawling with the curious Saturday night for a rare moonlight tour. Cemetery historian Jeff Richman leads the tour, joined by accordionists hired to provide musical accompaniment.Visitors are encouraged to bring a flashlight to navigate the nearly 200-year-old cemetery’s winding pathways under a full moon. “People obviously like the idea of a cemetery in the dark,” Richman…

Posted By Press Release On June 8, 2011 @ 4:31 pm In Press Releases | No Comments Contact Michael Briggs (202) 224-5141 WASHINGTON, June 8 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today visited a National Museum of American History gift shop that was just restocked at his urging with all made-in-America merchandise. The Smithsonian Institution put all American products in the gift shop after Sanders questioned why the museum, which celebrates American history, sold busts of U.S. presidents and other items crafted in China and other countries. Sanders saw the Chinese-made U.S. presidential busts when he went to the Smithsonian late last year looking for Christmas presents for his grandchildren. “I love the Smithsonian’s…